Thresher Sharks in Malapascua #sharkweek

As a shark started circling I felt a tug on my BCD (vest that the tank is attached to) it was the dive master. I don’t know if he grabbed me for safety reason, to keep me still or to make sure I didn’t get any closer. Whatever the reason was I didn’t care the sharks didn’t seem interested in us plus I knew I was in good hands.

Thresher Sharks are also known as “fox sharks.” Their tail-fins can be longer than their body and they use it as a weapon that can be as deadly as their teeth. Waking up before the sun is the only guarantee to see the Thresher Sharks as they swim through the cleaning station. Here they say that Malapascua Island in the Philippines is the only place you are guaranteed to see these sharks all year long.

I went on two dives and both times I had the pleasure to see these beautiful creatures up close. Today’s dive was just plain awesome. We saw a few sharks swim by when we were down 31 meters (101 feet). Being down so deep a diver can only remain a short period of time. After a few minutes we made our ascent.

As we were headed for shallower water I heard the dive master grunt. I turned in time to see him point to nothing but wide-open blue water as he put his other hand over his forehead making the shark sign. Of course I had been taking pictures of the colorful starfish and apparently missed another shark swim by. I thought to myself oh well at least my dive buddy saw it.

Unbeknown to me we started swimming in the direction the shark took. At 15 meters (49 feet) we found another Thresher. This one also decided do a few laps in front of us. (There’s video on the FB page) I wasn’t nervous at all; to me it felt as if the shark knew it was being admired and it wanted to show off a bit.